Detroit City FC to host FC St. Pauli in televised friendly

Detroit City FC will play host to FC St. Pauli of Hamburg, Germany, on May 19 at Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck. The match, which is scheduled to start at 6 p.m., will be Detroit City FC’s first televised match, airing on Fox Sports Detroit.(Photo: Jose Juarez / Special to Detroit News)

Detroit City FC will host an international friendly in May, and it will be watched by more than just the people in the seats.

Detroit City FC will play host to FC St. Pauli of Hamburg, Germany, on May 19 at Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck. The match, which is scheduled to start at 6 p.m., will be Detroit City FC’s first televised match, airing on Fox Sports Detroit.

FC St. Pauli plays in the second tier of German soccer, and is “popular for its progressive stance, raaucous support and community-based identity,” according to a release Wednesday from Detroit City FC.

“We’re honored to host an internationally renowned club like St. Pauli,” Detroit City FC co-owner Sean Mann said in a statement. “St. Pauli is a club that stands for important values that play a role in their community beyond sports. In many ways, they are one of the clubs we’ve always looked up to as we’ve tried to build our club into something special in our own community and beyond.”

The Logo of German decond division football club FC ST Pauli is seen at an iced car window on December 23, 2012 in Hamburg, northern Germany.(Photo: Getty Images)

Previously, Le Rouge has played English semi-pro FC United of Manchester, Irish League’s Glentoran and Italian Serie B’s Venezia on its home ground.

Detroit City FC’s home matches have been streamed live on Fox Sports GO app, but this will be the first time its match will be televised.

“We are thrilled to provide the first-ever televised Detroit City FC game on FOX Sports Detroit,” said Greg Hammaren, senior vice president and general manager of FOX Sports Detroit, in the statment. “... The excitement around this team has continued to grow and we’re proud to be part of it and help expose more people to such a great sport.”

Tickets for the match will cost $20, and will be available to the general public at 10 a.m. Tuesday at tickets.detcityfc.com. Admission is free to season-ticket holders.

The first-time visit of the German club is a measure of the semi professional's club emerging reputation on the global soccer landscape, DCFC co-owner Alex Wright said.

"Last year, bringing in Glentoran and Venezia, I think our profile in soccer circles has only grown," Wright said. "We know for a fact that when we reached out and started these conversations with St. Pauli that the international games that we have hosted in the past as well as our reach with high-quality streaming that they were factors that kind sealed the deal with getting them interested and excited to add us to their itinerary.

"People are fascinated by our city and I think people are equally fascinated by our club now."

Evidence of DCFC's reach is often seen through its Twitter feed where fans from Europe and Southeast Asia are seen hoisting Le Rouge scarves over their heads.

"Just last week someone sent us a photo of them from the Arctic Circle in DCFC gear," Wright said.